Chapter 61

It was already known that farewells were never beautiful.  

Whether it was a “good bye” or a “bad bye,” all of it was just a convenient facade.  

However, one thing was certain—this was not the way she had wanted to part.  

At the very least, Charlotte had planned to gradually settle things over the remaining week, leaving enough room for Erhen to notice. But even that had been impossible because she had been unwell. What would he think, seeing her suddenly overturn everything like flipping a table?  

Erhen remained silent.  

Charlotte couldn’t meet his eyes. Just as Erhen had done when he first entered the café, she turned her gaze toward the window.  

“…I wavered, just for a moment.”  

Though her heart still raced whenever she looked at Erhen, fortunately, her voice remained steady.  

“But that was all it was.”  

She thought the reason of “breaking up because we love each other” was just arrogance from those who chose to part.  

In the end, it was because they didn’t love enough, because they didn’t want it badly enough to overcome everything—they were just making excuses.  

Yet, standing before Erhen, she found herself making that very choice.  

No matter how deep her love was, she couldn’t gamble with Erhen’s life. The magic offered by the Overseer was no different.  

She wanted Erhen to live. To live and find rightful happiness. That was her responsibility for defying fate and saving his life.  

Her heart stung as though pricked by thorns. It ached as though crushed under the weight of hooves.  

Erhen, who had been quietly watching Charlotte, finally spoke.  

“No, Charlotte.”  

His voice, calling her name, carried no discernible emotion.  

Charlotte’s eyes, which had been fixed on the window, slowly turned to Erhen. When she finally met his gaze, his face revealed an expression so stoic that it was impossible to guess his feelings.  

“What did you and I even do?”  

His emotionless voice posed the question. The answer was all too simple for her.  

Charlotte had loved.  

She had wanted to love Erhen, so she had proposed a one-month relationship, and she had given her all to that relationship. She had tried to make even the shortest moments joyful, and she had cherished every moment with him until the very end.  

Before she had fallen ill, Charlotte had loved without leaving any room for regret. Her days with Erhen had been so happy, so overwhelming, and so beautiful that her feelings had only deepened.  

At some point, she had even unconsciously started imagining a future with him.  

And it had been the same for Erhen.  

“…We love each other.”  

The word “love,” spoken directly by Erhen, made Charlotte bite her trembling lips. Her hands tightened around the cup she was holding.  

No, I couldn’t falter now.  

Suppressing the emotions that surged within her, Charlotte falsely declared her feelings.  

“No.”  

“…….”  

“I didn’t.”  

Her trembling fingertips grew cold. If she had known they would part with such words, she would never have suggested a contract relationship in the first place.  

“…Did I ever say I loved you, Your Grace?”  

“…….”  

“And did you ever say you loved me, Your Grace?”  

“Don’t play word games, Charlotte.”  

Erhen’s face hardened coldly.  

His voice, suddenly harsh, made Charlotte flinch. A faint trace of anger flickered in his eyes.  

“I can’t accept this from you.”  

Charlotte understood his denial as only natural.  

He had always spoken of love.  

Even if he hadn’t expressed it in words, Erhen had conveyed his love to Charlotte through his entire being, through his whole heart. To claim that he hadn’t said it aloud and use that as a reason for their breakup would be a betrayal of Erhen.  

It might have been better to reveal everything. But even if she did, the conclusion, their ending, wouldn’t change. It would only serve to unburden herself at Erhen’s expense.  

So Charlotte chose the coldest approach she could muster.  

She placed the hand holding the cup on her lap, clenched her fist, and steadied herself.  

When Charlotte met Erhen’s gaze, there was no hesitation in her eyes.  

“There’s no need to overthink it. It was just that.”  

Her soft, full lips delivered her words clearly and firmly.  

“We tried it once, didn’t we? Let’s end it cleanly, just like we did back then.”  

“…Charlotte.”  

“I’ll be leaving first.”  

Her dry voice signaled the end of their relationship.  

Leaving the frozen Erhen behind, Charlotte slowly rose from her chair. She bowed slightly to him in farewell.  

As she turned to leave, she felt a strong grip on her wrist.  

With a gasp, she turned back to see Erhen, who had abruptly risen from his seat. His ever-handsome face was faintly contorted.  

“No.”  

Erhen spoke firmly.  

“How can we—how can I—end like this? No. This isn’t right.”  

“Your Grace.”  

“Don’t do this.”  

His grip on her wrist hurt. No, it wasn’t her pain—it was his.  

The urgency in his voice as he held onto her was trembling. Feeling the torrent of emotions pouring from Erhen, Charlotte swallowed hard.  

As she stood frozen, Erhen spoke again.  

“Don’t go, Charlotte.”  

His gaze, filled with anguish, was relentless.  

“Please, don’t go.”  

His dry, hoarse voice was desperate.  

Her wrist, trembling slightly under his grip, reminded her of the gravity of her actions.  

Only then did she fully realize what she had done. What wounds she had inflicted on him under the pretense of her own feelings.  

Charlotte couldn’t bring herself to face Erhen. She bit her lip at the sight of his pained gaze. Avoiding his eyes, she mustered her strength to keep her tears from falling and finally spoke.  

“Perhaps you and I, Your Grace…”  

“…….”  

“…should never have met again. Then at least, if we ran into each other by chance, we could have exchanged greetings with a smile.”  

Was it a shock? His grip on her hand slackened.  

Even so, Charlotte gently pushed away Erhen’s hand, which still lingered on hers.  

“…Take care.”  

With those final words, Charlotte turned and resolutely walked away.  

You did well. You made the right choice. You can’t push the one you love into the jaws of death for your own sake. Charlotte, you know that.  

In that fleeting moment, Erhen’s voice echoed behind her.  

“Charlotte.”  

She instinctively understood. If she turned back now, all her efforts to say goodbye would be in vain.  

Don’t turn back. Don’t turn back.  

Charlotte quickened her steps.  

“Charlotte!”  

Erhen called out again. His desperate cry caused the tears she had held back to pour uncontrollably.  

You can’t collapse now. Time will heal everything. It will be the same for Erhen. He’ll forget someone like me quickly, and he’ll return to being the stoic and brilliant Duke he always was.  

Every step Charlotte took out of the café and into the carriage, she repeated these words to herself like a mantra.  

Suppressing the overwhelming urge to turn back and run to him.